A
federal judge shot down a challenge to the copyright of the Woody
Guthrie folk anthem, blocking an attempt to put it in the public domain.
"First, “Happy Birthday to You” lost its copyright. Then “We Shall Overcome” became public domain as well.
But
on Friday, Woody Guthrie’s “This Land Is Your Land” avoided what had
been shaping up as a growing trend affecting the copyright owners of old
songs, as the publishers of “This Land” defeated a challenge against
it...
On Friday, Judge P. Kevin Castel of Federal District Court in Manhattan
did not reach a decision on whether the song deserved to keep its
copyright, because he said he didn’t have to. He ruled that there was no
legal dispute for him to adjudicate: Satorii had already paid the
license fee, and in exchange, the publisher had agreed to let Satorii do
what it wanted with the song. The judge dismissed the case."
